For work I’ve got to travel through Sunderland quite often, usually multiple times a day. The redevelopment is just a small bit where the brewery once was, and around the SOL, although aside from the Sheepfolds, nothing has really happened around the SOL.
There is pretty much nothing being down to its high street, aside from one building, the trains station (which is getting pelters from the residents) and a Holiday Inn.
Day to day, the vast majority of the residents won’t have any reason to interact with the majority of the buildings being built.
It is nothing like the ‘One of the most ambitious redevelopment projects in the U.K.’ tag that the Sunderland media and residents are repeating.
You know what though, it’s a shame. The high street for example is a mess. Studies show that residents of Sunderland do their non-grocery shop in higher numbers in places like Washington, Metro Centre, Newcastle, and Durham more than they do in Sunderland.
Last week the residents were celebrating the fact that Tesco opened up an Express store in their town centre. Imagine not having a convenience store in your town centre in 2025, heck even North Shields has one of those small shitty ASDA’s.
As it happens, Sunderland is in a position where it could feasibly knockdown a large number of buildings in it’s town centre and build a few quality mid-high rise buildings which could increase the population and create the demand for entertainment facilities, and retail.
It’s on the seaside, has a University, has a decent amount of parks within it, and it is a Metro ride away from Newcastle. It by all means should be an up and coming area, and it should be making strides to look appealing to younger people, especially if they are offering affordable housing within Tyne and Wear.
